Police seek two for passing fake payroll checks

Lincolnton Police are looking for two men wanted for passing fake payroll checks here and in seven other nearby jurisdictions.
Authorities in Lincolnton, Newton, Catawba County, Troutman, Mooresville, Huntersville, Conover and Concord have charges pending against Ryan Michael Napier and Christopher William Towers, Detective Matt Painter said.
Towers will be charged with six counts of financial identity fraud and six counts of obtaining property by false pretense, both felonies, for the incidents in Lincolnton.
Napier will be charged with two counts financial identity fraud and two counts obtaining property by false pretense.
The two allegedly passed eight fake checks at Peoples Bank, 1910 E. Main St., between March 5 and 11, Painter said.
The incidents in the other jurisdictions happened between January and March, he said.
The payroll checks used a real account number for Claremont Family Medicine out of Claremont. The checks all were for amounts around $700.
Bank officials were notified of the problem after someone with the company questioned the withdrawals made to his account.
Neither Napier nor Towers were employed by the business, Painter said. They could have obtained the account number from a discarded check or document in the garbage.
Police are looking to the public for help.
Painter has already received one tip â€” a woman in Charlotte saw Towersâ€™ picture on the news and recognized him as her neighbor. Charlotte-Mecklenburg police were dispatched to the area but were unable to locate Towers.
Painter said the two will probably continue their crime spree until they slip up or are recognized by the public.
â€œWe know who they are, but we donâ€™t know where they are,â€ he said. â€œTheyâ€™re costing us a lot of money.â€
Anyone with information should call Painter 704-736-8900.by Alice Smith